Bio: Former University of Florida Gators head football coach Urban Meyer, who won two BCS National Championships in six years, currently serves as college football game and studio analyst for ESPN.
In his six seasons at Florida, Meyer guided the Gators to the aforementioned pair of national championships, two Southeastern Conference Championships, three SEC Eastern Division crowns and six-straight January bowl games, including three BCS bowl games. His .813 winning percentage (65-15) is the second-best in school history and his .750 winning percentage (36-12) in SEC play is within the top five in league history among head coaches who spent five or more years in the conference.
Meyer, who was named Sporting News and Sports Illustrated "Coach of the Decade" in December of 2009, was the first coach ever to win two BCS National Championships and he is one of only two coaches in the history of the SEC to win two outright National Titles.
Prior to his tenure at Florida, Meyer coached two seasons for the Utah Utes where he earned multiple National Coach of the Year honors in 2004 after leading Utah to a perfect 12-0 season, the school’s first in 75 years. With its post-season bid to the Fiesta Bowl, Utah made history by becoming the first school from a non-Bowl Championship Series conference to earn a berth in a BCS Bowl.
Meyer began his head coaching career at Bowling Green in 2001, where he led the Falcons to their highest national ranking in school history (No. 16 ESPN/USA Today and No. 20 Associated Press). Bowling Green spent five weeks in the national polls and finished third in the nation in scoring offense, averaging 40.8 points per game.
The Ashtabula, Ohio, native learned the coaching trade from the likes of Sonny Lubick, Lou Holtz, Earle Bruce and Bob Davie, as he apprenticed at Ohio State (1986-87), Illinois State (1988-89), Colorado State (1990-95) and Notre Dame (1996-2000) before getting the head job at Bowling Green.
Beyond his on-field accomplishments, Meyer has also championed efforts in community service. He spearheaded an effort to feed needy families during Thanksgiving, and initiated a mentor program for young at-risk males in the Gainesville community. A 13th-round pick in the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft in 1982, Meyer played two years in the Atlanta Braves’ organization. He played as a defensive back at the University of Cincinnati before earning his degree in psychology in 1986. He went on to earn a master’s degree in sports administration from Ohio State in 1988. Meyer and his wife Shelley are the parents of two daughters, Nicole and Gigi, and a son, Nathan.
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